Streaming platform Anime Times has announced the launch of the Anime Times Store in India, bringing officially licensed Japanese anime merchandise such as t-shirts to Indian fans for the first time through its own retail arm.
Masahiro Sato, head of the Anime Times merchandise division, announced the move and said the company plans to introduce original Japanese products in India while keeping strict quality control and respect for the source material.
“This may still be a small step, but we believe it is an important one for us,” Sato said. “Our goal is to deliver licensed Japanese products to fans in India while consistently maintaining standards of quality, reliability, and respect for the original works even if we move forward gradually, step by step.”
He added that even basic items like t-shirts will go through a detailed process handled by Japanese designers and merchandise specialists. According to Sato, the team oversees design concepts, artwork, fabric choice, colour tones, and print quality to ensure the products stay faithful to the anime they represent.
“We focus on expressing the spirit of each anime not only visually, but emotionally through our designs as well,” he said. “We strive to ensure that fans can feel a connection to the story when they wear our products.”
Anime Times is a Japan-origin streaming service operated by Amazon Prime Video Japan in partnership with major anime publishers. The platform curates anime titles for streaming and has slowly expanded its presence outside Japan, including India, where it functions as a dedicated anime add-on channel. The merchandise store is its first move into physical retail in the Indian market.
The move also places Anime Times alongside other companies that have begun selling official anime merchandise in India. In 2025, Taiwan-based distributor Muse Communication launched its own licensed merchandise store called Anime Originals, offering products based on series such as Spy x Family, Dandadan, Demon Slayer, Hunter x Hunter, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, and Tokyo Revengers.
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2026-01-30 12:33:00
